2 recent Portraits for C&C please

[Captain IK]

1.

2.

Couple of shots of my wife.

Please feel free to critique. (the pics...not my wife )

 

[anything you synth]

1. the lighting looks well done

2. the soft effect is good, but theres something wrong with the contrast/levels. in the left side of the picture, her hair looks very 2D and grey, as well as the top areas of her face and hair. for this kind of picture, more dramatic lighting would do great. the lack of shadows takes away from the potential.

 

[Samanax]

I'm seeing hot spots on the right side of her face (camera left) in the 1st image.

Not quite sure what's going on in the 2nd image so I won't comment.

 

[rufus5150]

In terms of composition, I'm not sure the 'up the nostrils' shot is an easy one to pull off well and in both images, that's kinda where my eye's drawn.

#1 the light is way too hot on the face. Skin tones also seem a bit red, and there's a bit of banding. Could probably reduce the negative space at the top by 25% or so, still have some head room but match the frame with how tight you have it in on her arms.

#2, especially her hair, seems quite posterized.

 

[InTheShoot]

I think your creativity is really good, but I find neither to be (and I am a noob so feel free not to take my C&C, this is just my artistic opinion!!) very flattering AT ALL - #1. The lighting seems off, it almost makes her look as though she has very different skin on each side of her face and her eyebrow has sort of been cut short by the light, #2 seems to me, looks like an airbrushed painting... something not quite right...
But, keep up the great work!!

 

[bdavis]

Why are they looking up like that? Totally ruins the shots for me.

I dont like the first one, looks posterized. The lighting on her is also too hard and she isn't even looking at the camera. I know you dont have to for a portrait, but the way her eyes are and with her head cocked, it looks funny.

The second one is just too strange. I guess I've never seen a portrait done of someone's throat.